Brave Enough
by Luce-and-Lish
Summary: "You're a VK. Since when is caring in the cards for you?" Maddie laughed slightly. "Didn't you ask me that question earlier?" Jay asked, bringing his hand up a bit to brush her hair out of her face. "Yeah... I still want my answer..." she said breathily. "Well... since I met you, Red."(Part of The Stories of the Lost) (Rated T for language) (Cover made by lokiobssessed)
1. Foreword

The 'Descendants' franchise told the tales of the sons and daughters of great heroes and villains, from Maleficent to Beast and Belle. However, it only focused on a fraction of these children. Why? Surely there are more stories to be told, but, once upon a time, they were too painful to talk about.

So the stories were modified, several people were cut out or replaced. But it is time that the true stories are told, that the missing sons and daughters are exposed...

 _In which the daughter of Merida hits a new bullseye: the heart of Jafar's son._

Disclaimer: We only own our own characters, all rights to Descendants, their characters and plot points go to Disney, Kenny Ortega and the Descendants Team.

Disclaimer 2: This is mostly Lish's story


	2. One: Children of the Most Feared Villain

**THREE TEENAGERS** sat around a simple wooden picnic table, a boy and two girls. The boy had soft brown hair, he was dressed in a buttoned up royal blue blazer with a yellow handkerchief positioned in the pocket and matching trousers, a white dress shirt, and black dress shoes. This was the son of the Beast and Belle, Prince Ben, due to become King in a few weeks. Sat clinging to his arm was a brunette, her hair lightly curled over her right shoulder. She was dressed very primly in a pink frilly dress with blue accents that flowed to just above her knee. Princess Audrey, the daughter of Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) and Prince Philip. Across from the couple, a redhead rested her elbow on the table, her chin rested on her hand. Her hair bounced in curls, she wore a simple black tank top and a green plaid mini skirt. The daughter of Merida, Madison, or as people knew her as, Maddie.

"Well, I think it's a great idea." spoke the redhead in a thick Scottish accent, a slight smirk on her plump lips that were coated in a nude gloss.  
"Are you serious, Maddie?" Audrey exclaimed, raising one of her eyebrows. "They're evil, dangerous… who knows what they could do to us! Or our school."

"Of course I'm serious. It's about time something interesting happened here. We could do with some mischief." Maddie smiled.

"Well we already have you here, Madison." Ben chuckled lightly. Maddie laughed.

"Benny boo, why did you have to invite them here?" Audrey pouted, resting her head against Ben's arm. He sighed softly.

"I have said this, I believe they deserve a chance to go to school. They're not their parents, and we can't judge them for who their parents are." Ben explained.  
"Who are their parents again?" Maddie asked, yawning slightly.

"The Evil Queen, Cruella De Vil, Jafar and Maleficent." Ben said slowly.  
"Cool." Maddie nodded. "I'm up for coming to the little 'welcome'. Can't wait to meet them." she smirked, leaning back and folding her arms across her chest.

"Of course. I want to make them feel as welcome as possible." the prince smiled.

"Hm, well I'm not so excited about it…" Audrey muttered.

"Oh come on, just because one of 'em cursed your mother." Maddie rolled her eyes. Audrey looked down and sighed a little. Silence filled the air for a moment until Ben cleared his throat.

"Well, they should be here soon. Maybe we should make our way to the entrance." he smiled at the princess beside him, and then at the redhead opposite him.

"Suuure, princey. Let's go." Maddie jumped up from her seat. Audrey nodded.

"I suppose so, Benny boo." she smiled sweetly up at Ben as they stood up. Her grip on his arm remained strong.

"Ugh." Maddie muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes at the nickname Audrey gave her boyfriend. The couple walked off, the sunlight shimmering and the green grass healthy beneath their feet. "Well, won't this be interesting." the redhead said to herself. "Children of the most feared villains," she mused in a slightly mocking tone. "Here we go." Maddie sauntered confidently after Audrey and Ben.


	3. Two: Welcome to Auradon Prep

**Longer one this time :)**

Cheerful booms of mariachi band instruments, the toots of trumpets, the banging of drums, filled the air, mingling with the anticipation and excitement.

"You've really gone all out here, haven't you princey?" Maddie commented, her arms folded over her chest. She looked behind her at the many students waving flags, clapping and smiling.

"It's a special day. It should be one to remember. I want them to feel welcomed." Ben explained, Audrey clung to his arm.  
"They're from the Isle. This'll make 'em feel _too_ welcomed." Maddie said. Before Ben could say anything else, Fairy Godmother appeared.

"You've really outdone yourself Ben! This is wonderful!" she spoke cheerily. Ben smiled.

"Thank you, Fairy Godmother." he nodded. All attention suddenly turned to the sleek black limo pulling up in front of the school. The driver walked around to the side of the car facing the welcome crowd. First, a very purple, very leather girl stepped out, her cropped purple hair and emerald eyes made it easy to realise that this was Maleficent's daughter, Mal. A blue girl was the next to step out of the car, she had the posture of a princess. The Evil Queen's daughter, Evie. Two boys tumbled out of the car in a heap, fighting over a piece of blue cloth. The taller one had brown hair covered with a beanie, clad in leather, clutching a laptop. It was clear that this was Jay, Jafar's son- stealing things. The boy on the floor was covered in black and white, hints of red here and there. He scrambled onto his knees and revealed his chocolate-covered face. Cruella De Vil's son, Carlos.

"Just… cleaning up!" Jay smiled, pulling Carlos to his feet as Fairy Godmother approached them. Maddie raised her eyebrows at them.

"They're worse than my uncles as bears." Maddie muttered.

"Leave it like you found iiittt." Fairy Godmother said in her very chipper tone. "And by that I mean just _leave_ it." she gestured her hands out. Audrey smiled sweetly and nodded. Jay tossed everything that he and Carlos had taken back into the car. Mal held her fists firmly on her hips, Evie stood primly by her side, her hands also on her hips.

"Hel-lo foxy…" Jay smirked, slowly approaching Audrey. Audrey's smile faded and flooded with an awkward stare as he folded his arms over his chest. "The name's… Jay." he said in a husky tone. Ben looked at him confusingly and Mal stifled her laugh.

"Wow, what a charmer." Maddie commented, chuckling slightly. Audrey laughed fakely, Fairy Godmother turning to her.

"Welcome to Auradon Prep." Fairy Godmother interrupted the awkward situation. Jay's smile faded as Fairy Godmother began to chuckle. "I'm Fairy Godmother. Headmistress." she curtseyed. Chocolate-covered Carlos stared blankly as Mal's eyes widened.

" _The_ Fairy Godmother? As in, 'Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo'?" she made a wand gesture with her hand, as if she was holding one.

"Bibbidi Bobbidi, you know it!" Fairy Godmother nodded, smiling. The four villain kids began to smile.

"Yeah, I always wondered. What it felt like for Cinderella when you just, appeared," Mal smiled as Fairy Godmother nodded. "Out of nowhere. With that, sparkly wand, and warm smile."

"Awhh." Fairy Godmother mused.

"And that _sparkly wand_." Mal repeated, her hands clasped together. Behind her, Jay nodded and Carlos smiled.

"That was a long time ago." Fairy Godmother said. "And as I always say, don't focus on the past or you'll miss the future!" she made jazz hands. Mal smiled, her eyes widening a little as Jay stared confusingly and blankly. Audrey and Ben then stepped forward.

"It's so good to finally meet you all." Ben commented. "I'm Ben." he introduced himself, his hands clasped together.

"Prince." Audrey interrupted. "Benjamin." Evie's jaw dropped, though Mal seemed less interested. "Soon to be king!" Audrey said excitedly.

"You had me at 'prince'." Evie breathed, stepping forward. "My mom's a queen, which makes princess." she curtseyed.

"The Evil Queen has no royal status here." Audrey pointed out, shaking her head. Evie slowly stood straight, her smile fading. "And neither do you." she smiled.

"Scared of your competition for top princess?" Maddie commented, sniggering. Audrey huffed.

"This is Audrey." Ben introduced the brunette princess.

" _Princess_ Audrey." she acted as if she was correcting him. "His girlfriend." she smiled happily, reaching out and holding Ben's hand. "Right Benny boo?" Mal rolled her eyes and tilted her head as Audrey giggled.

"And this is-" Ben began, but Maddie stepped forward.

"Maddie. Well, Madison if you wanna go technical." she bowed, her Scottish accent explicit as always. "Merida's the mum. I can use a bow and arrow, so I'm definitely not a 'prissy pink princess'."

"Ben, Madison and Audrey are going to show you all around." Fairy Godmother said, leaning over the couple's joined hands. "And I'll see you tomorrow." there was a pause. "The doors of wisdom are never shut!" Fairy Godmother stepped forward, pulling apart Ben and Audrey's hands and smiling as Mal jumped back, as well as Carlos and Jay. "But the library hours are from eight to eleven and in case you haven't heard, we have a little thing about curfews." Fairy Godmother explained. "That Madison has a tendency to _not_ follow." she raised her eyebrows at the redhead. Mal and Evie nodded, but Carlos and Jay's expressions remained confused. Within a few seconds, Fairy Godmother began to walk away, soon followed by the band who carried their instruments and left in a single file, leaving just Ben, Audrey, Maddie, Jay, Mal, Evie and Carlos. There was a silence before Ben stepped forward towards Jay.

"What?" the redhead folded her arms. "Oh come on, I'm only ever like ten minutes late." she muttered before looking at the four villain kids. "So we have the blue princess , Mistress of All Evil in Training, little lost chocolatey puppy and Mr Flirty Muscles." Maddie looked at each of them as she described them.

"So you like the muscles?" Jay smirked.

"Oh please, don't flatter yourself." Maddie scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"It is so, so, so great to finally meet y-" he was cut off by Jay punching him playfully on the chest. Jay nodded, smiling. Ben moved over to Mal and shook her hand. Mal seemed unimpressed and bored. The pair locked eye contact for a moment.

"This is a momentous occasion." Ben announced, breaking his contact with Mal. "And one that I hope will go down-" he shook Carlos' hand, tilting his head at the boy's chocolatey face. "In history…" Ben pulled his finger up to his mouth. "And chocolate." he chuckled a little as Carlos licked his thumb. "As the day our two peoples began to heal." Ben smiled, stood in front of the blue-haired Evie with Audrey close by his side.

"The day that you showed four people where the bathrooms are." Mal interrupted his little speech, swinging her body a little. Ben chuckled.

"A little bit over the top?" he asked, moving back over to Mal.

"Oh a little more than a little bit." Mal looked down at the floor.

"I told you, princey." Maddie commented, flipping her orange curls.

"Well, so much for my first impression." he smiled, Mal looking back up. Both of them laughed with slight awkwardness and locked eye contact once again.

" _Alright_ save the flirtation for later." Maddie interrupted. "Seems like Blue ain't your only competition, princess." she smirked at Audrey. Audrey glanced at the redhead unimpressed.

"Hey, you're Maleficent's daughter, aren't you?" Audrey asked Mal, though she fine well knew the answer was yes. Mal stared boredly at the princess as she continued to speak. "Yeah, you know what, I totally do _not_ blame you for your mother trying to kill my parents and stuff." Audrey smiled sweetly- too sweetly- as Mal's eyes widened and she nodded. "Oh, my mom's Aurora. Sleeping-"

"Beauty." Mal interrupted, a hand on her hip and a fake smile on her lips. "Yeah I've heard the name. And well, I totally do not blame your grandparents for inviting everyone in the whole world but my mother to their stupid christening."

"Water under the bridge." Audrey said.

"Totes!" Mal began to laugh, and Audrey followed suit, both laughing fakely in unison. They stretched it out, Audrey's face melting to disgust.

"Oh so what, get over it. My mum cursed my grandmother and we ain't in a family feud." Maddie rolled her eyes. "Jeez."

"Okay!" Ben clapped. "So how about a tour?"


	4. Three: Shooting at a Target

"Auradon Prep, originally built over three hundred years ago and converted into a high school by my father when he-" Ben began, but he was interrupted abruptly.

"Beeeennnn, do they really care about a tour?" Maddie commented as the four VKs boredly followed the prince and Audrey clinging to his arm as usual.

"Well I thought it would be nice, that's all." Ben shrugged, turning to the Scottish redhead.

" _Nice?_ I don't think they care. You do know that they're from the Isle and don't care about anything _nice_." Maddie raised an eyebrow. "A nice thing for them would probably be a dark hole, things to steal and spray paint. A tour of Good's success? Really? And I thought you had good ideas, princey."

"Leave him alone, Maddie." Audrey commented.

"No one asked you to speak princess. Just go back to standing there and looking pretty, Ben's accessory." Maddie scoffed. Audrey's eyes widened and she huffed.

"Madison, please, not now." Ben sighed. Maddie shrugged.

"I never get to have any fun here." she sighed, and noticed that Mal struggled to stifle her laughter and she had caught the attention of, surprisingly, Jay. He was staring at her. "Okay? Earth to Muscles?" Maddie waved her hand in front of Jay's stunned face.

"Hey, Jay." Mal hit him on the arm. It still didn't work. Then, Ben clapped, and the statue above them of the Beast morphed suddenly from man to beast. Unexpectedly, Carlos screamed loudly and jumped back into Jay's arms, finally pulling him out of his daydream.

"What?" Jay shook his head. Mal raised an eyebrow as Carlos remained whimpering in Jay's arms.  
"So pathetic puppy boy's girlish scream wakes you up? Great alarm clock choice." Maddie sniggered. Ben chuckled.

"Carlos, it's okay. My father wanted his statue to morph from beast to man to remind us that anything is possible." the prince explained as Jay dropped him to the floor.

"Ow Jay!" Carlos exclaimed, scrambling to his feet.

"Does he shed much?" Mal asked Ben, crossing her arms.

"Yeah, mom won't let him on the couch." Ben replied.

"Oh you think your dad's bad." Maddie chuckled. "Try dealing with my grandma and my uncles. They're the _worst_." Evie and Mal exchanged a confused look. "When they're bears, of course." Maddie added.

"Okay moving on!" Ben declared, starting to walk towards the building's entrance with Audrey. Mal, Evie, Carlos and Jay started to follow, but Maddie grabbed Jay's leather collar on his jacket and pulled him back.

"Take a picture next time Muscles, it'll last longer." she whispered in his ear, placing a phone in his hand. He looked at her, confused and their eyes locked for a second. "Go on then, you're gonna lose your posse." Maddie pushed him forward so that he almost knocked Carlos over. Maddie chuckled and followed behind them, eventually watching up and walking next to Ben and Audrey.

"Come on then princey. Give us another _totally interesting_ historical speech of yours then since they seem to be your speciality today." Maddie said, swinging her arms back and forth as she walked.

"Well you don't usually seem all that happy about them." Ben shrugged, his princely smile on his lips as always.  
"Sarcasm, princey. Sarcasm." Maddie rolled her eyes.  
"I like her." Mal whispered to Evie during a giggle. "Soooooo do you guys have a lot of magic here in Auradon? Like wands and things like that?" Mal asked Ben.

"Yeah, it exists of course, but it's pretty much retired. Most of us here are just ordinary mortals." Ben explained, shrugging with the last part.

"Who happened to be kings and queens." Mal added.

"That's true. Our royal blood goes back hundreds of years." Audrey nodded.

"Trust me, you should be thankful that there isn't much magic. When my mum messed with it, she ended up turning her mum- my grandma- into a bear." Maddie commented. Audrey laughed fakely.

"Maddieeee. Don't you have archery practice or something?" the brunette said _very_ sweetly. Maddie crossed her arms.

"Not for another half an hour. Sorry to disappoint, you ain't gettin' rid of me." she smirked slightly.

"Archery?" Jay questioned.

"A sport. Involves a bow and arrow, shooting at a target." Maddie explained. "I mean if you're that interested I could show you sometime."

"That is a great idea Maddie." Ben nodded.

"Sure… I would lo- I mean why not." Jay nodded, his eyes not moving off the redhead. Maddie smiled at him and there was a short silence.

"Anyway, we need to wrap up this tour… I have work to do." Ben looked around and noticed a blonde boy dressed in green and equipped with glasses on the stairs. "Doug!" he called, catching the attention of the boy. "Doug come down." Ben said, as Doug walked towards the group. "This is Doug." Ben gestured to him. "He's going to help you with your schedules and show you to your dorms. I'll see you later, okay?" Ben said. "And if there is anything you need, feel free to-"

"Ask Doug." Audrey interrupted, smiling once again, though it appeared fake to Maddie.

"Or you could ask Ben. You know, the one who brought you over here and is going to be king. Or if you want you could ask me." Maddie shrugged, smiling at Audrey, who seemed unimpressed.

"Thanks." Mal nodded.

"I'll keep that in mind." Jay said, and Maddie nodded a little in response.

"Maddie, are you staying here?" Ben asked.  
"Yeah why not. Ya know, just in case glasses here loses his voice." Maddie said, resting her elbow on Doug's shoulder. Ben nodded and walked away with Audrey attached to his arm.

"Thank god that princess is gone." Maddie shook her head.

"I agree with you there." Mal nodded, folding her arms. Doug then cleared his throat.

"Hi guys. I'm Dopey's son. As in Dopey, Doc, Bashful, Happy, Grumpy, Sleepy, and… Heigh-Ho…" Doug's voice trailed away when he laid eyes on Evie. He stared.

"Evie. Evil Queen's daughter." Evie introduced herself, smiling.

"Okay don't confuse them, glasses." Maddie elbowed Doug. "You just told them you're Dopey's son but right now you're being more Bashful." the redhead chuckled. Doug pushed his glasses up and looked down at his clipboard, handing a piece of paper to each VK.

"Anyway… so about your classes. I, uh, put in the requirements already… history of woodsmen and pirates, safety rules for the Internet and, uh, remedial goodness 101." Doug explained, and during that, Maddie yawned, earning her a giggle from Mal and a smirk from Jay.

"Let me guess, new class? Come on guys, let's go find our dorms." Mal commented, starting to walk forward. Evie, Carlos and Jay followed her.

"Guys, they're thaattt way." Maddie gestured to the right stairwell. The four of them turned around and strutted past. Mal, then Evie, then Carlos, and Jay, who stopped when Maddie whistled.

"I'll see you 'round, Muscles. Maybe come get you later. I can show you archery then." Maddie smiled, playfully punching Jay's arm.

"Sure." Jay nodded. "See you then."

"See you then, Muscles." Maddie nodded, watching the VKs leave. She strolled past Doug as he was muttering to himself.

"Dopey, Doc, Bashful, Happy, Grumpy, Sleepy and…"

"Sneezy." Maddie said, patting Doug's chin. 

**Thank you so much to everyone who followed/favourited and reviewed this story.**


	5. Four: Alright Then, Muscles

"So you met the VKs?" a black haired girl- Lonnie, the daughter of Mulan- who was laid on her stomach on her bed questioned Maddie as she attempted to pull a hairbrush through her crazy red curls. "I heard the son of Jafar is totally a dreamboat."

"Meh. He's alright." Maddie shrugged. She heaved a sigh and threw her hairbrush onto her bed.

" _Alright_?" Come on, you have to have other words!" Lonnie persisted.

"Confident. Big ego. Criminal. Muscles. Take your pick." Maddie said as she leaned down and peered underneath her bed.

"Muscles? He has muscles?" Lonnie pressed her questions further.

"Like I said, meh. Not that impressive, really." the redhead responded. "They're just getting so much attention because they're different and we've never seen anyone like 'em before."

"Well they _are_ the sons and daughters of the evillest villains." Lonnie pointed out. "Of course they're different. And attractive I've heard."

"Yeah well you never know. Maybe they're more like us than we think." Maddie shrugged, pulling out her bow and some arrows from underneath her bed and slinging it over her shoulder.

"Do _you_ think he's attractive?" Lonnie asked.

"Who are we talking about here? I wasn't really paying attention." Maddie yawned.

"Jay. Do you think he's attractive?" Lonnie repeated. Maddie paused for a moment. "You _do_!" Lonnie exclaimed.

"Well I wouldn't say he isn't." Maddie said casually. "That's why I didn't deny it or accept it."

"You were definitely daydreaming about him." Lonnie muttered.

"What? No I wasn't." Maddie sighed. "You know what, I can't be bothered to deal with you and your obsessions so I'm off, I'll be back." she walked towards the door with her bow still on her shoulder.

"Where are you going?" Lonnie looked over to the door.

"Oh I'm going to go bake some 'welcome to Auradon' cupcakes and sing songs." Maddie said, her tone riddled with sarcasm. She then pointed to her bow. "Archery. Where'd you think?"

"You have to say hi to Jay if you see him." Lonnie said excitedly. Maddie rolled her eyes.

"Oh my god I'm so done with you and they've been here not even a day." she grumbled, leaving the room and shutting the door behind her. Alone in the corridor, Maddie looked left to right. "Well, I did say that I'd teach him archery." she muttered to herself. "Alrighty then, Muscles, I'm on my way." she mumbled as she strode off left down the hallway towards the boys' dorms.

"Twenty nine… thirty… thirty one… thirty two!" Maddie exclaimed when she reached the door. "Well I hope this is the right one." she muttered, knocking three times and then stepping back. There was a silence, and then all of a sudden a large thud.

"I'll get it!" a voice exclaimed. It sounded like Carlos, Maddie assumed.

"No I want to get it!" Jay said.  
"Jeez they act like children." Maddie said quietly.

"Will both of you stop? _I'll_ get it." a feminine voice interrupted the boys' bickering. Maddie heard the door click and opened to reveal the purple-haired daughter of Maleficent: Mal. In the room, Evie stood with her hands on her hips, shaking her head at Jay and Carlos in a pile on the floor.

"Uhm... what are you doing here?" Mal raised an eyebrow.  
"Didn't realise you were here." Maddie crossed her arms.

"That isn't answering my question." Mal replied. "We're busy."  
"Alright alright, I'll just come back tomorrow." Maddie shrugged and turned away.

"No no it's fine!" Jay's voice interrupted. Within a few seconds he had scrambled over to the door, almost pushing Mal out of his way. "Hey, uh, Maddie, right?"

"Yeah that's me." Maddie nodded, turning back to the door. Mal cleared her throat.

"Jay. Say bye bye to the prissy princess. We have things to do." she pressed.

"Actually, I'll have you know that I'm not your typical 'prissy pink princess'. I'm a fiery redhead who can shoot a bow and arrow. Learned from the best." Maddie said defensively.

"Riiiight. Merida's daughter, aren't you?" Mal tilted her head.

"Yep." Maddie nodded. "And trust me, we're both far from princesses."  
"Still. Why are you here?" Mal asked again.

"Ask Muscles there." Maddie pointed up at Jay, which Mal followed. She raised her eyebrows and turned back to Maddie. She said nothing and slammed the door shut after pushing Jay back into the room. "Okay? I'll just wait here then…" Maddie raised an eyebrow.

"What are you thinking?!" Mal exclaimed once the door had shut.

"What's happening?" Carlos asked, sitting up on the bed in the room.

"You do remember why we're here, right Jay?" Mal ignored Carlos and continued.

"Yeah… we're here for the wand." Jay nodded.

"Right, the wand. Not for you to get distracted by a curly red haired princess!" Mal snapped.

"She's not… distracting me." Jay defended, scratching the back of his neck. Mal crossed her arms and tilted her head. "She's not!"  
"Well then why are you going out with her?" Evie questioned.

"Wait." Mal interrupted, an evil smirk on her lips. "This is good."

"Good? How?" Evie asked.

"She knows Auradon. This is where she's from." Mal started. "Sooo…"

"So she'll know where the wand is!" Carlos finished.

"Exactly." Mal nodded and turned to Jay. "Be subtle. But you need to find out where it is."

"Uhm… I'll try." he shrugged.

"Good." Evie nodded.

"Now go. I'm already sick of this school so the sooner we find the wand the better." Mal pushed Jay towards the door and opened it to see Maddie still stood out there, her eyebrows raised.  
"You guys alright there?" she asked.

"Just fine." Mal smiled the tiniest bit. "See ya later Jay." she slammed the door, leaving Jay and Maddie stood awkwardly in the hallway together.


	6. Five: Race or Hand

**Happy Saturday! Here's some Jaddie fluff (thank Lish for that)**

"Uh, so…" Jay scratched the back of his neck.

"Lost all your confidence now, huh?" Maddie raised her eyebrows and looked up at him.

"What, uh, what do you mean?" he questioned.

"Nothing, Muscles." Maddie rolled her eyes. "Come on I'm sure you and your evil friends have stuff to do so I won't keep you too long." she started to bounce down the hall, her red curls also bouncing. Jay quickly followed behind her.

"Muscles?" he asked, now walking alongside her.

"Sure. You got a problem with the nickname?" Maddie bounced.

"No." Jay shook his head. "But why have you nicknamed me?" he asked, scratching his neck again.

"Because I felt like it. And it suits you." she poked his arms. "But come on, we're not getting anywhere just chattering." she started to run down the corridors. "Let's see how well you can do against a princess!" she called.

"Wait, what?" Jay shook his head and started to run after her. "That wasn't fair!"

"You're a VK, I thought fair wasn't in the cards for you!" Maddie called back, smirking as she continued to run. Jay had no reply to that at all.

Eventually, Maddie and Jay reached the fields. Both were out of breath and panting from all the running, but Maddie was proud of her victory.

"Well well, guess you aren't as sporty as your muscles show." she nudged his shoulder as they sat on one of the bleachers.

"I took it easy on you." Jay said defensively.

"Suuuuure you did." Maddie chuckled. "You're just a sore loser, Muscles." he rolled his eyes.

"I didn't expect you to actually win."

"Why?" Because I'm a princess? Because I'm a girl?" she questioned, with a slightly sad tone. Jay didn't reply and she sighed. "Yeah. That's what everyone thinks." she stood up.

"Wait." Jay grabbed her wrist and pulled her back down. "Don't leave already. Come on, tell me, what do you mean by everyone?"

"I mean everyone. Everyone expects all girls to be perfect prissy princesses. They're all obsessed with makeup and dresses." Maddie sighed.

"And that's not you." Jay said.

"Exactly." she nodded. "I climb trees. I don't wear dresses. I wear dirty jeans. I don't wear pink. I wear barely any makeup. I'm sporty, I get into fights. None of that is princess-like."

"But I like that." Jay interrupted. "Different is better."

"You're used to different though. Auradon is stereotype central." Maddie rolled her eyes and sighed. "But I didn't bring you out here to talk about me." she stood up again, pulling out a bow from under the bleachers, as well as a bunch of arrows.

"Time to teach you archery." Jay stood up.

"Okay." he nodded and reached out to take the bow. Maddie stepped back and shook her head.

"You think I'm gonna let you use this without at least giving you a demonstration?" she raised an eyebrow. "It's not take and do as you please here." she pushed him to sit on the bleachers and then walked over to the target and stepped quite far back from it.

"Uh… what are you doing?" Jay asked.

"Showing you how it works." Maddie said in a duh tone. She then put her left foot forward. "First you put your- you're right handed, right?" she asked, looking at him. He nodded. "Okay, just making sure. Anyway, you put your left foot forward in line with the target," she did so, "And then you hold the bow with your left hand…" she waved her hand and held the bow with it. "And you'll use your right hand for the string and arrow." Jay nodded. "You keeping up?"

"Yeah. How do you remember all of this?" he asked.

"Done it all my life." Maddie shrugged and pointed the bow down and attached an arrow to it. She then recreated her stance from before. "You need to make sure your back is straight." she advised. "Use three fingers to hold the arrow. Index above and middle and ring below." she explained, doing so. "Make sure the bow is straight and vertical and line it up with the target." she said. "Pull the string back as far as you can and lift your elbow up. And then… release." she let go and the arrow shot towards the target, hitting the bullseye. Jay watched and his mouth dropped open. It looked so effortless. And she looked beauti-

"Earth to Muscles?" Jay snapped out of it to see Maddie waving her hand in front of his face.

"Wow…" was all he said.

"It wasn't that impressive." she shrugged. "I've done it many times."

"It was impressive in every way." Jay said. "And you… you're…"

"Come on you're just talking crap now." she interrupted, holding the bow out out him. "Let's see how much you payed attention." He looked up at her for a moment before taking the bow.

"Okay…" he nodded, taking the bow and standing where she had stood. ' _Crap… I was too distracted by her… I can't impress her now…'_ he thought, putting his left foot forward and holding the bow and arrow correctly.

"Just don't shoot me, Muscles!" Maddie called. Jay looked down to see her stood at the side of the target, her arm resting on the top of it.

"My aim isn't that bad, Red." Jay said defensively.

"Oh so now you've given _me_ a nickname." Maddie smirked. He could see it from the distance and rolled his eyes and shot the arrow.

"Whoops." he had aimed too high and the arrow went spiralling towards Maddie's head. She quickly ducked.

"Jeez Muscles! You just nearly speared my head!" she exclaimed, jogging up to him.

"I didn't mean to… I was distracted…" he muttered.

"When are you not?" she rolled her eyes. "Let me help." she went and got a small stool and stood behind Jay on it. "You stand in front of me," she instructed and he followed. He then put his left foot forward.

"See I remembered that part." Jay smiled and she rolled her eyes.

"One part, Muscles." she shook her head and took his left hand and guided it to hold the bow. "Left hand on the bow…" she said slowly, "Right hand on the string…" she guided his right hand there and held it there. "And…" she trailed off, realising what she was doing. Holding both of his hands. Her chin rested on his shoulder. Their bodies pressed to each other. ' _Maddie! Snap out of it!'_ she shook her head.

"And?" Jay questioned.

"Uh…" Maddie's mind went blank. All she could think about was their hands touching. She felt her cheeks start to burn.

"Hm, it appears the natural has forgotten how to do it." Jay smirked.

"No!" Maddie quickly said. "Sorry… uh... " she pulled their hands up and pulled their right ones back with the arrow. Once certain it was in line with the target, she made their hands release. The arrow shot forward and hit the bullseye. Suddenly, Jay spun Maddie so that he was now facing her, holding her hands.

"That was cool." he said, looking into her eyes. Maddie froze and opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. "Red? You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah!" she quickly snapped out of it and nodded, letting go of his hands. "A bit of practise and you'll be great at it…" she said, a moment of silence following.

"Maddie?" Jay broke the silence.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks." he muttered. Maddie's eyes widened.

"I made a VK say thanks?" she questioned, shocked.

"Shut up." he rolled his eyes.

"Wow. I made you say thanks." she smirked. "I never thought I'd hear such a word come out of your mouth."

"Don't make me more tempted…" he mumbled.

"What was that?" Maddie raised an eyebrow. "I didn't hear you."

"Nothing. It doesn't matter." Jay said quickly. Another silence began until Maddie cleared her throat.

"I'd better take you back to your villain friends…" she said quietly.

"Oh. Yeah." Jay nodded. "Come on then." he smirked and then suddenly started to run. "I'll race you back!" he called.  
"That's not fair!" Maddie groaned and reluctantly started to run.

"I'm a VK. Fair isn't in the cards for me." Jay smirked back at her. She groaned again.

"For fuck sake." she sighed.

"You said it first." he started to slow down. "Fine. We won't run." he said as Maddie caught up to him "But if you won't race me you have to hold my hand." he smirked. Maddie's eyes widened but she cleared her throat. ' _Since when did he get so bold? Oh wait… he did call Audrey foxy this morning…'_ she thought.

"I'm not a baby." she scoffed.

"Race or hand." Jay pressed. Maddie paused.

"Fine…" she held out her hand. "Only because I don't feel like running again." she quickly clarified.

"We can do both." Jay said, starting to run and pulling her alongside him.

"Muscles why?!" she complained as they ran.

It didn't take Maddie and Jay long to get back to Jay's room. They had half walked, half ran, since Jay was willing to compromise. However, they hadn't released their hold on each other's hands for the entire time. When they stood at the door, Maddie finally let go, dare she admit with reluctance.

"Well here we are…" Maddie announced.

"Yeah… I'll see you around, Red." Jay nodded, looking into her eyes.

"See you around, Muscles…" Maddie replied. Just as she started to walk away, she felt a grip on her wrist. She looked up at Jay.

"What are you…" she trailed off as he leaned down, their faces so close… and planted his lips gently on her cheek. He quickly entered his room after that, leaving Maddie stood dumbfounded, staring at the door.

"What. The Fuck. Was That?!" she breathed as soon as she was certain she was far enough away. She walked back to her room, her mind buzzing with confusion.

Jay closed the door behind him and let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding. ' _Jay what the hell? What did you just do?!'_

"Do you know where the wand is?" Mal's voice ripped Jay out of his thoughts.

"Uh… what?" he looked at his three friends Evie, Mal and Carlos stood in front of him, confused.

"I knew he'd forget." Evie shook her head.

"Well it's a good thing we do." Mal said.

"What? How?" Jay questioned. Evie held out her magic mirror which showed the wand's location. "Ohhhh…"

"It's in a museum 2.3 miles from here." Carlos explained.

"Then let's go get it." Jay said.

"Are we sure your little girlfriend is gone?" Mal asked.

"She's not my girlfriend. I've known her a day." Jay denied quickly.

"He's lovestruck." Evie sighed.

"Come on. The sooner we get that wand the sooner we can get out of here. And get the old Jay back." Mal said, dragging Jay along, with Evie and Carlos following.


	7. Six: Frolicking with Jafar's Son

**A/N: So... I know it's been 4 months. I'm sorry. There's an explanation down below for those interested, but on with the story:**

The next school day had came and Maddie was getting stares and whispers left right and centre as she walked down the hallways. She didn't understand why at all, but just kept walking and ignoring. She knew the four VKs were currently in Remedial Goodness 101 while most of the school had a free block. Suddenly she felt a grip on her arm. She turned around swiftly to see that it was her best friend Elyse, daughter of Elsa.

"We need to talk." she whispered harshly.

"Woah hello." Maddie's eyes widened slightly. "Nice to see you too El." Elyse ignored her and dragged her to the room she shared with her cousin, Autumn Bjorgman, the daughter of Anna and Kristoff.

"Oh you found her!" Autumn exclaimed as the two entered.

"Hey Autumn. But El, why are you acting so weird?" Maddie raised her eyebrows. "I don't see what we need to talk about. I haven't done anything to you. I haven't even seen you the past few days."

"So you haven't been frolicking with Jafar's son?" Elyse raised an eyebrow.

"What?" Maddie's eyes widened slightly. "Oh..." she looked down and her cheeks turned pink. Her head shot back up and the blush faded. "Wait. How do you know?"

"Everyone is talking about it." Elyse's tone turned more sour.

"Literally everyone! It's the latest gossip! There's even gossip that someone saw you holding hands. And KISSING out on the tourney field!" Autumn exclaimed.

"We didn't kiss!" Maddie quickly denied.

"I also heard that you two went walking hand by hand to your room, and, and I quote 'in a fit of passion started making out against the wall and then you dragged him into your room'." Elyse's scowl grew.

"WHAT?!" Maddie exclaimed. Her face turned as red as her hair. "That's not true! Who even said this?!"

"Who do you think Mads?" Elyse rolled her eyes and then raised her eyebrows. "Are you blushing?" she asked, shocked.

"No!" Maddie shook her head.

"Awww that's adorable!" Autumn commented.

"That's not what happened at all. I took him out to the tourney field and taught him how to shoot a bow, then I walked him back to his room, and he..." she stopped. "And that was it."

"What did he do?" Elyse crossed her arms. "And how did people get to the conclusion you kissed?" she demanded.

"You know people like gossip around here!" Maddie sighed. "We definitely didn't kiss. He didn't do anything and neither did I." she said. "I don't know why it matters to you."

"Because... whoops." Autumn covered her mouth. It was the few times she actually had managed to stop herself. Elyse shot Autumn a glare. She then sighed.

"Because you're my best friend and I don't want you to change completely when a stupid _bad boy_ comes along and forget who we really are."

"No one's gonna change me. I was just welcoming them here and actually being nice." Maddie scoffed. "Since when have you known me swoon over any stupid bad boy? Or anyone for that matter." Elyse shrugged.

"Please. All the so called bad boys at Auradon are pansies. And we're all bound to like someone at some point." she said quietly.

"Well I don't. And it's certainly not going to be Jay." Maddie crossed her arms and then tilted her head. "You like someone, don't you?"

"Oh no." Autumn tried to whisper.

"Autumn shut it. No." Elyse said coldly. "I don't. I have in the past. I'm leaving." She said and exited the room quickly.

"Uhmmmm..." Maddie looked back at Autumn.

"I think you should talk to her." she said. "I'll just annoy her even more and she'll get mad at me."

"Uh... okay." Maddie left the room. "El, where'd you go?" she looked left and right, then spying a snowflake on the floor. "That way." she turned right. "More snowflakes would be great right now..."

"I don't want to talk." Elyse's voice came from somewhere.

"Look Autumn told me to come see you." Maddie sighed, trying to follow Elyse's voice to find her. "I'm sorry for whatever I've done to you"

"You didn't do anything," Elyse came from the corner. "It's just a touchy subject…"

"Oh..." Maddie looked at her. "Well you know you can talk about anything with me." she stepped forward.

"This... this… I just can't." Elyse stepped back. "It's a petty thing anyways, just need to get myself together."

"Are you sure?" Maddie crossed her arms.

"Yes, I just need to be alone for a bit. Let's just say I've come to realise some things."

"Fine." Maddie sighed. "But at least a hug? You know I don't just hug people." Elyse nodded and Maddie stepped forward and gently hugged her, and Elyse hugged back.

"I'm sorry…" she muttered, pulling back. She then turned around and disappeared around the same corner she came from initially.

"Alright then..." Maddie raised her eyebrows and turned around. However, she bumped straight into someone's chest.

"Well I didn't think I'd be seeing you again so soon." a voice said. Maddie stepped back.

"Jay?!"

 **A/N: So... reasons why it has taken so long for me to update.**

 **1\. Grief**

 **Within the last half of a year, I have lost one of the most important people in my life (my grandmother), and my dog who was with us for 11 years, among others. Both my grandmother and my dog lived with me and I am trying to handle their absence in the house the best I can.**

 **2\. Studying**

 **My workload is increasing by the day, leaving little time for leisure, but also making me forget to update.**

 **I am not trying to make excuses for me being a forgetful bean. I am explaining because I feel I owe you for the lack of updates.**


	8. Seven: The Girl on the Tourney Team

**I was going to update Hooked per my friend's suggestion but I may have forgotten to do a major edit... so enjoy :)**

"I think I prefer Muscles you know, Red." Jay shrugged, leaning above Maddie as she looked up at him. She rolled her eyes.

"Are you just following me now?"

"Uh…" he furrowed his eyebrows, leaning against the wall.

"So that's a yes." she crossed her arms.

"You're literally outside my dorm, Red." he chuckled. Maddie stepped back further and looked at the door in between them.

"Oh… right." she flipped her curly hair. "I knew that." she leaned against the wall, imitating his pose.

"Sure you did. You just knew you'd see me here." he shrugged, smirking. "That's why you waited outside my dorm."

"You wish." she rolled her eyes. "Actually, I just followed my friend… she was upset." Maddie looked back to where Elyse had disappeared just a few moments ago.

"Huh, sure." Jay nodded.

"Aren't you supposed to be in class?" Maddie changed the subject, raising her eyebrow. "Remedial Goodness or whatever? Or are you skipping because you're a 'bad boy'?" she used air quotation marks.

"Nah class ended." he shrugged. "You like bad boys who skip class?" he smirked. She rolled her eyes.

"Nah, I like snobbish stuck up princes." she said sarcastically. "I'm not interested in anyone." a frown crossed Jay's lips for a split second but it quickly disappeared.

"Well that should change." he muttered, looking into her eyes. They locked eye contact for a moment but Maddie shook herself out of it.

"Look I have to get going…" she said. "I need to talk to coach about-"

"Tourney." Jay finished.

"What? How'd you know?" Maddie's eyes widened.

"Fairy Godmother mentioned it… she said I should use my energy there…" he explained. "Can you take me out there?" he asked. Maddie sighed.

"Fine. But only because I'm going there anyway." she started to walk off and Jay followed on quickly.

"Hey Jay!" a voice came from behind them. Both turned around to see Carlos running after them. "Wait for me!"

"I didn't agree to take the puppy for a walk too." Maddie grumbled, but Carlos caught up to them.

"She's gonna take us to the tourney field." Jay explained to Carlos.

"The quicker we get there the better." Maddie sighed.

"Oh come on Coach! Just let me be on the team!" Maddie begged, looking up at Coach Jenkins as the rest of the boys such as Chad and Ben practised on the field behind them. Carlos and Jay sat on one of the bleachers, just watching.

"We have space for another cheerleader after Raelynn dropped out." Coach suggested and Maddie groaned.

"But that's not where I want to be! I want to be out on the field, playing actual tourney! Not on the sidelines looking pretty, squealing and waving a pom-pom around!" she gestured over to the group of girls who were practising their cheer routine.

"But that's where _girls_ belong." Chad said as he walked over to Maddie and Coach.

"No one asked for your sexist opinion Prince Jerk." Maddie crossed her arms, rolling her eyes.

"It's the truth." Chad shrugged. "You're a princess. You're with the cheerleaders. There's no place for a girl out on the tourney field with us boys."

"You know I'd love to see you prancing around in a cheerleader's dress with pom-poms." Maddie said through gritted teeth, glaring up at Chad. "But it's a shame I'd rather pierce an arrow through your head. And punch that smug look off your face." she balled her fists.

"Madison." Coach warned.

"But he's being a di-" Maddie stopped herself and cleared her throat. "An annoying specimen of life."

"I'm being truthful. Why would a girl ever play sports?" Chad stated.

"Because girls can do whatever they want. Princess or not. Stereotypes are the reason we can't show our full potential." Maddie snapped back.

"Chad. Go fill the water bottles." Coach sighed, holding the bridge of his nose. Chad grumbled but obliged.

"Coach ple-" Maddie turned around to see Jay behind her. "Why are you there?"

"I'm standing up." Jay shrugged.

" _Right_ behind me? Ever heard of a thing called personal space?" she shoved him back, which made him stumble but he just smirked.

"Nope." he stepped forward so their bodies were almost pressed against each other.

"God you're such an annoyance." Maddie scoffed, stepping backwards.

"Jay! Madison!" Coach called. "Save the flirtation for elsewhere. Not on the tourney field!" Maddie quickly turned to face him and her cheeks heated up.

"We weren't! I wasn't!" she protested.

"You love it, Red." Jay said and she responded by promptly punching his arm.

"Jay, Ben, offense." Coach stated as Chad returned, tossing a bottle to Jay and pausing before throwing one to Maddie.

"Chad you're defense. Aaaannnddd…" Coach stopped, his eyes hovering over Maddie.

"Pleeeaaaasseee Coach." she begged, pulling out the puppy dog eyes. Coach sighed.

"Madison, you're the shooter."

"YES!" she jumped up and punched the air. Chad's mouth dropped open.

"B-but Coach…" he tried to protest.

"What? The _girl_ on the team won't play as well as the boys?" Maddie pouted. "Prince Jerk didn't get his own way for once?" she started to laugh. "Awh, shame." she bounced away from Chad and tossed a helmet behind her, which Jay caught after being in a daydream.

"Come on Muscles, let's see if you're better at tourney than you are at archery!" Maddie said, running out onto the field.


	9. Eight: Break the Rules

"Oi! Puppy boy! You're in the kill zone!" Maddie called out to Carlos, who was cluelessly looking around.

"Put your helmet on!" Coach Jenkins called out.

"Kill zone?" Carlos questioned, slowly walking sideways as he used one hand to attempt to put on his helmet.

"Pick it up. Put it on! Two hands." Coach yelled. Maddie ran over to Carlos and put his helmet on.

"It's not that hard to put on a helmet." she rolled her eyes under her own helmet and ran off as Coach blew the whistle. Ben started off with the ball, passing it to Maddie as he slammed into an opponent. She passed it on to another player before noticing, at the other end of the field, Jay was just knocking players over.

"What the fuck is he doing?" Maddie questioned, slowing to a stop. Jay continued and knocked Chad straight to the floor, which made Maddie burst into laughter. He ran and dived, rolled and jumped over the dragon fire. "Woah." Maddie stared as the scene unfolded. The majority of the other players were still on the floor.

"That's not allowed!" Chad exclaimed.

"Oh shut up." Maddie rolled her eyes and kicked Chad's helmet to push him back to the floor. She watched Jay dodge every bit of dragon fire that came flying at him. He then sprinted towards a panicking Carlos.

"Jay! It's me! It's Carlos!" he screeched, though Jay continued to barrel towards him.

"I'm not missing this, this is hilarious!" she exclaimed, laughing as she started to run down to the other end of the field. Carlos fell to the floor and Jay used his shield as a boost, jumping over and hitting the ball straight into the goal. He immediately started to dance around and cheer. He threw his helmet to the floor.  
"You're such an idiot!" Maddie shouted through snorts, laughs, chortles and giggles.

"He cheated." Chad grumbled.  
"Oh shut up." Maddie rolled her eyes, still laughing until Coach blew the whistle.  
"You!" Coach Jenkins shouted across the field, pointing at Jay. "Get over here!" he looked confused but started to walk as the cheerleaders, apart from Audrey, jumped and cheered. Maddie shot them glares… absentmindedly. Audrey placed her hands on her hips and did not look impressed.  
"Oi princess what's up with you this time?" Maddie strutted over to the cheerleaders.  
"Go away." Audrey huffed.

"Alright alright I was only asking." Maddie rolled her eyes, taking off her helmet. "You're only pissed off because he's not playing by the stupid _rules_."  
"They already broke the rules by letting you on the team." Audrey scoffed.  
"Then why not just break the rules even more?" Maddie shrugged and bounced away, over to the rest of the team who had gathered around Coach Jenkins.  
"I call that raw talent!" he exclaimed, smiling at Jay. Maddie snorted at Chad's face, confused and almost disgusted. "Come find me later and I'll show you something you haven't seen before. It's called a rule book." Coach chuckled.  
"Nah I think the way Jay played was better." Maddie commented. "More fun."  
"Rules still have to be a thing, Madison." Coach said.  
"Maybe she should come with you. Then you can show _her_ the rule book too." Chad grumbled.

"Chad leave it." Ben said.  
"Madison is a fine player on the team." Coach Jenkins defended her.  
"Oh yeah but the way I play isn't the problem, is it Prince Jerk?" Maddie raised her eyebrows. "The problem is that I'm a _girl_."

"Don't start now, you two." Coach sighed and then patted Jay's arm. "Welcome to the team, son." Coach then looked at Carlos.  
"You ever thought about band?" he asked.

"Ha ha." Carlos said sarcastically while Jay started laughing and Maddie sniggered.  
"I'll work with him Coach." Ben said.  
"Let's run that again!" Coach called and blew the whistle. Jay smirked and turned around.  
"Woo!" he came face to face with Chad and the smirk faded.  
"Come on boys. Save your death stares for later!" Maddie yelled as she ran out onto the field. Jay knocked into Chad's arm and then ran off.  
"Ow…" Chad clutched his arm.


	10. Nine: Did I Say That Out Loud?

"Oi, Muscles!" Maddie called, seeing Jay walking towards the doors to get back into the school building. He immediately turned and smiled slightly, changing his paths so he was moving towards Maddie.  
"What's up, Red?" he asked.  
"The sky." Maddie pointed upwards and then burst into laughter. "Wow that was the most boring response I could've said."  
"Why'd you call me over?" Jay questioned, smiling. "So you can admire the muscles from close up?"

"In your dreams." Maddie scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"Always, Red." he shrugged.

"I don't care but I just wanted to say you did well out there today, for a guy that's never played tourney before. You played better than some of the princes." she spoke the last word with disgust.  
"You're a good player too, Red." Jay laughed a bit.  
"Thanks, Muscles." Maddie smiled. The two locked eye contact for a moment, but they were ripped apart when Coach Jenkins shouted.  
"Jay!" he called across the field and beckoned for Jay to come over to him.  
"Coming!" Jay called back and ran off from Maddie. She watched him for a bit and leaned down, tying her shoelace and listening to Coach and Jay's conversation.  
"The team's a bunch of princes, if you know what I mean." Coach said.  
"Oi!" Maddie commented, standing up. "What does that make me then?" she raised an eyebrow and walked towards the two of them.

"Well Madison, you aren't included in that category since you aren't a prince." Coach Jenkins pointed out.

"Well I know that." she rolled her eyes.  
"You also know that you're one of the best players on the team." Coach added and Maddie smiled.  
"Yeah because I'm not with the whole 'I'm royal so I'll play nice' thing." she rolled her eyes. "And archery helps." she shrugged.  
"You're telling me." Jay commented. "It's all 'after you old chum', 'oh pardon me, did I bump into you?'" he mimicked a posh tone, making Maddie laugh and snort a bit. "Where I come from, it's 'prepare to die, sucker!'. As my father says, the only way to win is to make sure everyone else loses!" he started to get carried away. "You rip…"  
"Jay! Jay, Jay, Jay!" Coach tried to get him to stop. Maddie rolled her eyes and punched Jay's arm.  
"Oi, Muscles. Cut it out." she said, making him stop.  
"Let me explain a team. Uh, it's like a family." Coach explained.  
"You do not want to be at my house at dinner time." Jay said seriously and Maddie raised an eyebrow.  
"Trying having ex-bears for family members." she muttered. "Then you have a recipe for mess and disaster. Funny though."

"Okay okay. Um… you know how a body has a lot of different parts? The legs, elbows, ears. But they all need each other." Coach explained, though he was struggling. Jay nodded. "Well that's what a team is… different players who work together to win."

"Well we would if Chad would leave me be." Maddie grumbled. "I swear I'm gonna swing for him one day."  
"No you won't, Madison." Coach sighed. "You know he just… likes playing by the rules."

"No. He just doesn't like me." Maddie crossed her arms.  
"Anyway," Coach sighed again. "Make any sense, Jay?"

"Can I be the fist?" Jay asked, holding up his fist with a bit of a smirk. Maddie snorted and held her hand in front of her mouth, not covering it though.

"Nah I think you're better suited to be the dick." she sniggered.  
"Madison!" Coach exclaimed.  
"Did I say that out loud?" Maddie said innocently.


	11. Ten: Flirting Games

The next day, Maddie was by her locker when she heard singing from down the hallway.  
"What the…" she furrowed her brows and peeked around the corner, turning back when she noticed Jay walking in her direction.  
"Don't act like you weren't staring Red." came Jay's voice from behind her.  
"Don't try your flirting games with me, Muscles." she rolled her eyes and turned to face him.

"I'm not playing any flirting games." he shrugged. Maddie scoffed.

"You say that when you literally called Audrey foxy the first time you met her." she pointed out. "And the girls can't stop talking about you."  
"My charm doesn't seem to have the same effect on you though, Red." he tilted his head a bit.  
"Because I'm not a hopeless damsel in distress who believes her fate is decided by a boy." Maddie crossed her arms.  
"I know." Jay reached out and lifted up one of Maddie's red curls, playing with it. "And that's what I like about you."  
"You what?" Maddie raised her eyebrows.  
"Nothing, Red." he dropped the strand of her hair and she looked at him in confusion. "Oh, by the way, what do you know about the coronation?"  
"The coronation?" she tilted her head. "Why d'you care about that?"

"Just… curious." he shrugged.

"Right…" Maddie nodded slowly. "Ben's getting crowned king." she shrugged. "That's all really."  
"Where are you watching it?" he questioned.  
"Uh… near the front. I'm practically considered family. I grew up with Beast and Belle as my second parents." she explained. "Mum needed the support after…" she trailed off.  
"Are you okay?" Jay asked with slight worry in his tone.

"Yeah. Fine." Maddie shrugged it off, blinking a tear away. Jay noticed this and frowned, opening his mouth to say something, but Maddie interrupted before he could. "Doesn't matter. My point was I'm down near the front and that's all you need to know."

"Okay…" Jay nodded.  
"Is there anything else you need to interrogate me about or can I leave?" Maddie asked with coldness in her tone.

"No… but are you sure you're okay?" he asked again.  
"Yes. See you later. Don't forget it's the tourney game later." she turned around quickly and started to walk away. Jay jumped forward and grabbed her hand.  
"Red wait." he said. She spun around.  
"What?" she snapped. He slowly let her hand slip out of his.  
"See you later." he sighed after a pause.  
"Yeah whatever." Maddie rolled her eyes and walked down the hallway, leaving Jay stood watching after her.


	12. Eleven: Lovebirds

The laces of Maddie's shoes twisted together as she held rested her foot on one of the bleachers. The time had come for the big tourney game. The Fighting Knights against the Sherwood Falcons. Maddie saw it as her chance to prove that just because she was a girl didn't mean she couldn't play tourney. She pulled her number 5 jersey over her head and grabbed her water bottle. She went to turn the corner when Chad appeared in front of her.

"Get out of my way, Prince Jerk." Maddie grumbled.  
"I don't take orders from a princess." Chad replied, not budging.  
"And I don't let a stupid prince boss me around so move before I make you move." she gritted her teeth.  
"Look at you, trying to act all tough." Chad scoffed. "You're harmless."

"Oh don't test me, pretty boy." Maddie shook her head, clenching her fists.

"Or what?" Chad questioned. "You're gonna beat me up? You're a princess, you're _weak_. You've never even had a father." Maddie's face dropped.

"How… how the fuck do you know about that?" she asked breathily.  
"Who doesn't know about it?" Chad scoffed. "That your dad walked out on you because you and your mom were disappointments and can never be anything more." Tears filled Maddie's eyes and she lifted her fist, only for it to be caught in the air before it could hit Chad's face.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Jay's angry voice came from behind Maddie and Chad. "Leave her alone, Chad." Chad's eyes widened and then he laughed.  
"See what I mean, you're having to be saved by a _boy_." he sneered and Jay glared at him.  
"I'm stopping her from beating you up so be thankful. I could just let her knock you out but I'm not. So leave, prince boy." Jay said harshly, squeezing Maddie's wrist with… reassurance? She wasn't sure.  
"Fine." Chad grumbled, turning around and strutting away from the pair. Maddie looked down at the floor to fight the tears, looking up when she felt Jay's hand intertwine with her own. He gently pulled her down to sit on one of the bleachers.  
"Is it true?" Jay asked gently. Maddie looked at him confused, blinking away a tear.  
"What?" she questioned.  
"Your dad…" he said softly. Maddie looked down at the floor and nodded a bit.  
"Yeah… it's not all happily ever after here." she sighed.  
"Hey, it's okay." he reached forward with the hand that wasn't holding hers and lifted her head up, touching her cheek. They almost instantly locked eye contact. "Don't listen to him, he's a dickhead."  
"I know." Maddie replied after a moment of silence. "You didn't need to do that. You shoulda just let me knock him out."  
"I wanted to. I could tell you weren't okay." Jay frowned a bit.  
"Why d'you care so much, Muscles?" she questioned. He tensed a bit but then smiled.  
"Because…" he began to lean forward, and Maddie found herself doing so too…

"Jay! Madison!" Coach Jenkins' yell made them rip away from each other. Their gazes fell onto the Coach with wide eyes. His eyes were glued to something. Maddie followed them and blushed when she noticed that her hand was still intertwined with Jay's. She quickly pulled it away and smiled sheepishly. Coach recovered and cleared his throat. "Come on lovebirds, I can't have my best two players slacking off today."  
" _Love_ bi-" Maddie started to exclaim but was cut off by Coach Jenkins blowing his whistle. Maddie and Jay exchanged a look once more before running out onto the field.


	13. Twelve: Number 5

"It's very close! The Sherwood Falcons at 2, the Fighting Knights at 1," the commentator's voice boomed over a speaker. "Chad passes to Ben, Ben passes to Jay. An opponent tries to intervene and Chad blocks! There seems to be some commotion on the field between numbers 5 and 23!"  
"What the fuck are you doing Prince Jerk?!" Maddie yelled. "I was open!"  
"Yeah but you'd have just lost the ball again straight away." Chad scoffed. "We both know that you're too weak to keep control of a ball."

"Oh really? I can't keep control of a ball? Have you seen yourself?" Maddie crossed her arms. "You're too busy fiddling with your own balls to pay attention to the game. Oh wait hang on, I forgot. You don't have any!" Chad scowled.

"The one who doesn't have balls on this team is you, Madison." he grumbled.  
"Oh yeah that's the huge problem isn't it? I'm a girl so I can't play tourney. Pretty sure you tell me this every day now." Maddie rolled her eyes.  
"If you weren't dragging us down we'd be winning by now." Chad snapped.  
"Oh? I'm dragging you down?" Maddie raised her eyebrows. "Oh yeah this is all _my_ fault. Because I'm the one who missed an easy pass. Because I belong with the cheerleaders. Because I'm a gi-"  
"Aaaannnddd the first half is over!" the commentator called. "Just in time for 5 and 23 to fix their dispute!" Maddie and Chad exchanged a glare.  
"You are so fucking lucky I have friends I wanna talk to otherwise I'd literally punch you until you bled to death." Maddie seethed. "Or at least I would if I was agile enough. I forgot, I'm a girl."  
"Red." Jay's voice came from behind her and a hand was placed on her shoulder.

"What?" she snapped with a scowl but softened when she saw it was just Jay. He paused for a moment as their eyes locked, but then cleared his throat.  
"Your water." he held a bottle out to her.  
"Oh yeah… thanks." she took it from him with a small smile before turning away.

"Maddie can we-" Jay began but Maddie noticed her friends waving her over.

"Talk later." Maddie said quickly before jogging over to her friends on the bleachers: Elyse, Autumn, Raelynn and Ally.  
"Heyyy there she is." Rae smiled.  
"Not looking happy." Elyse frowned.  
"Yeah… usually tourney makes you really happy! What's up? Is it Chad?" Autumn questioned.

"Of course it's Chad." Maddie groaned, taking a sip of her water.  
"What was all of that about on the field?" Ally asked. "You and Chad… the arguing…"  
"When are they not arguing?" Elyse pointed out. "He needs to back off."

"It's fine El." Maddie sighed. "But yeah. He's-"

"Hi guys." came Cecilia's voice from behind the girls.

"Oh hey!" Rae smiled.

"Ceciiiiiii!" Autumn said happily.

"I missed my twin sister." Ally hugged Ceci.

"Hey." Maddie attempted to wave, since she was holding her water bottle.

"Look, It's our missing blonde." Elyse commented, somewhat nicely before turning back to Maddie. "You were about to tell us what all that was about?"

"Oh, right yeah." Maddie nodded, her tone already holding frustration and anger. "That dickhead," she pointed over to Chad, who was talking to Audrey and Ben. "Is blaming us being behind on ME. Me! Even though he missed a pass! And this is all just because of the fact I have a vagina!"

"He's a dickhead." Rae shook her head.

"It's not fair on you at all!" Ally sighed.

"You're literally one of the best players out there." Autumn said. "In fact, you are the best player apart from maybe Jay he's good too but-"

"What the fuck." Elyse scowled. "You're way better than him, that was an easy pass and he missed it because he was probably thinking about himself."

"Well that's jerkish of him." Ceci said, crossing her arms.

"I know!" Maddie grumbled. "But no, blame it on Maddie because she's a girl. She can't play tourney because she's a girl. He's so fucking lucky I haven't punched him yet!" she took another sip of her water.

"Just do it." Rae shrugged. "He deserves worse than just a punch."

"She got warned last time that she could face suspension if she touched him again." Elyse said in a bored tone. "Cinderella made quite the scandal and Fairy Godmother is terribly fond of her."

"Well that's stupid." Rae leaned back, crossing her arms.

"I know! But it would be a shame if one of my arrows speared through his head wouldn't it." Maddie muttered.

"Well none of us really want you to be suspened." Autumn said. "We'd miss you."

"It wouldn't be a good thing at all! So maybe it's best if you hold back..." Ally said.

"But he's a diiiiiickkk." Maddie sighed.

"That wouldn't just get you suspended, it'd get you arrested or sent to the isle." Ceci pointed out.

"So? The Isle doesn't scare me. Prison doesn't scare me." Maddie shrugged. "It would be worth it to see him bleed to death." she muttered.

"Well isn't that morbid." Ally tilted her head. "At least you're not as bad as the Queen of Hearts. 'Off with his head'? You know that?"

"We all know that." Rae said.

"That's not a bad idea actually." Maddie shrugged. Ceci shuddered and stepped back a bit.

"Well I don't want to lose my best friend." Elyse crossed her arms.

"Fine. I'm not really going to do anything." Maddie grumbled.

"Red!" Jay's voice came from the field.

"Oh crap I gotta go." Maddie sighed. "Hold this." she tossed her water bottle behind her to Elyse, running down to Jay and the rest of the team. Maddie smirked a bit and 'accidentally' shoved Chad before she stood next to Jay.

"Well I think it's time for a substitution." Chad crossed his arms.  
"What so you can get me out of your way?" Maddie tilted her head. "It's a shame that won't be happening, Prince Jerk. I'm sticking in the game til the end. When we win."

"The only thing we'll be winning is the humiliation of losing." Chad grumbled.  
"Here we go again. Blaming me because I-" Maddie rolled her eyes and was cut off by Jay. Him wrapping an arm around her shoulders made her stop and widen her eyes. "What are you-" she started to ask but then the whistle blew.  
"I thought I told you two to stop flirting! Can't you go without touching each other for just a few hours?" Coach Jenkins commented. "Teenagers." he shook his head. Maddie blushed and Jay quickly moved his arm away.

"Aaaaannnnddddd the game is back!" the commentator's voice boomed. "The Sherwood Falcons take control of the ball. Chad tries to take it but trips and falls." Maddie turned to see Chad on the floor, mud on his face and burst into laughter, with the crowd. From Maddie's position she heard Elyse shout.

"Boy get up, you're tripping on your own stupidity again!" This made Maddie snort and noticed Chad send Elyse a rather rude gesture. "Well that ain't very princely!" Elyse shouted.

"You aren't helping me concentrate on the game!" Maddie yelled across the field, laughing.

"Sorry!" called Elyse. Maddie shook her head and calmed herself down.

"Chad is up everyone and the game is back on!" the commentator boomed. "Jay takes the ball from the opponent! Jay passes over to Prince Ben, Chad waves but Ben passes back to Jay! They're getting close to the goal…"  
"OI! Muscles!" Maddie yelled and waved at Jay.  
"Maddie is open, Jay passes to Maddie and she spies the goal." the commentator continued. "Let's hope her archery skills help her hit the bullseye in tourney! An opponent runs towards her but Jay pushes him out of the way." the crowd went silent.

"Thanks." Maddie mouthed to Jay and ran on.

"If she gets this then it could tie up the game and make it 2-2!" the commentator yelled. Maddie took a breath and used all her might… "Maddie shoots... and she scores!" the crowd cheered. Maddie immediately jumped up in celebration as Jay congratulated her. She smirked, noticing Chad's scowl. She heard multiple cheers from her friends and suddenly got an idea. An idea to piss Chad off even more. "It is now tied 2-2 thanks to Maddie, number 5 and-" the commentator was cut off suddenly as Maddie grabbed the microphone from him.

"How's that for a _girl_ on the tourney team?" she said into the microphone, prompting a few more cheers. The commentator cleared his throat and Maddie rolled her eyes, handing the microphone back.

"Alright! After that... interruption we are back!" he said. "The game is even tenser now that it's all tied up 2-2! We have ten minutes left on the clock! Maddie takes the ball from the opponent…"

"Jay!" Maddie called. She passed to Jay, Jay passed over to Ben. "Ben! I'm open!" she called. The next few moments were a complete blur. A boy rushed in front of her, someone from the other team. Maddie panicked and then suddenly, she felt herself falling sideways, crashing straight onto the floor. Her ears started to ring. Her vision blurred. An excruciating pain shot through her body. She could hear gasps and people trying to talk to her. Her eyes focused on Jay's worried face. But she couldn't move her mouth to reply.


	14. Thirteen

**I would like to apologise for the lack of updates for the past couple of months. Exam season was draining and once that was done I was off travelling with no computer. I'm sorry guys. But I'm back, and updates will (hopefully) be somewhat regular, on Saturdays. (I also apologise for any formatting issues)**

 **That being said...t** **hank you all for following, reviewing or even just reading this story. It means a lot.**

 _ **(** Anom: Yes it is, I have updated my bio with the right information)_

 **Rest in peace, Cameron Boyce. You will be missed by everyone**

"Maddie! Red, come on respond to me." Jay's voice echoed in Maddie's ears as the ringing slowly calmed, her vision began to focus again. But one thing that didn't die down was the pain in her shoulder. Her head throbbed.

"I-I…" Maddie breathed. "I'm… fine…" Jay frowned and wrapped his arms around her, carefully pulling her up and supporting her by resting her against his chest."You fell down hard. You're not fine." Jay said worriedly."I am… let's continue the ga-" Maddie couldn't continue. She winced and stifled a scream when she fully began to feel the pain in her shoulder."Red, no." he shook his head. Maddie tensed up and squeezed her eyes shut, sitting herself up, though Jay kept an arm tightly around her."Muscles yes. I'm fine." she opened her eyes to see Elyse, Autumn, Rae and Ally running towards her."Maddie what happened?" Rae asked."Nothing." Maddie muttered as tears formed in her eyes."Sure looks like nothing." Elyse said coldly but worriedly at the same time.

"I'm fine now let me up and play on." Maddie grumbled.

"But you're clearly not fine, Red." Jay said, keeping his arm around her. "You couldn't move a few minutes ago. We seriously thought you passed out."

"Mads, you can't even sit up on your own." Elyse said, shooting a glare at Jay.

"Maddie, are you ok?" Ceci asked, running up to them.

"I'm fine I'm fine just let me play." Maddie sighed.

"But like Elyse said, you can't sit up." Autumn pointed out.

"How are you meant to run around and play the game?" Rae questioned.

"I can do it if you'd let me get up and try." Maddie said with frustration, though a tear slid down her cheek and Jay wiped it away with his thumb.

"You'll end up hurting yourself more." he said. "I don't want that."

"Wait... are you crying?" Ally asked. "You never ever cry."

"I'm not." Maddie looked down. "I'm fine."

"Ally is right." Elyse said, leaning down, and pulling Maddie's chin up and looking into her eyes. "You are." she finished softly.

"Um... isn't her shoulder supposed to be higher?" Ceci whispered to Rae.

"Oh shit." Rae's eyes widened, looking at Maddie's shoulder. "Yeah.. it is."

"I'm fine." Maddie turned her head away.

"You need to stay still until the first aid comes." Jay said softly.

"Leave me alone. I don't need to be treated like a baby. I'm fine." Maddie grumbled, trying to disguise the fact she was crying. She wasn't moving her left arm or shoulder at all. "I'm not crying. I'm not hurt. Just let me finish the game."

"But Maddie... your shoulder." Rae said.

"What about my shoulder? It's fine. I'm fine. Now leave me alone." Maddie said quietly, focusing her eyes to the floor.

"And you said you weren't hurt." Jay sighed.

"I'm not!"

"Maddie... your shoulder is out of its socket... how are you not screaming?" Ceci asked.

"She's stubborn. Too stubborn." Elyse grumbled as the first aid arrived.

"Ma'am, we need to get you off the field to examine you" the first aid person said.

"I'm fine. I'm finishing this game." Maddie said firmly. "I'm not getting off this field until the game is over."

"Red your shoulder... you can't play." Jay said gently.

"I can and I am so stop babying me." Maddie grumbled, tears flowing down her cheeks.

"Madison Dunbroch, you are getting out of the field right now. Your arm is hanging out of its socket, you are crying and you're holding up the game." Elyse said in a harsh tone. Her eyes then softened. "Come on." she stood behind Jay in order to take his place.

"Jay! We can't hold the game off anymore!" Coach Jenkins called. "We need you!" Jay turned to Maddie.

"They're not going to let me play. You need to go and win this game." Maddie said before he could say anything. "Now."

"But you-" Jay tried to speak.

"Now. Go you idiot." Maddie said. "And if you don't win this I'm going to punch you." Jay sighed but nodded. He quickly leaned in and kissed her cheek, leaving Maddie with her eyes wide and her cheeks slightly pink. Jay ran off without saying a word over to the rest of the team.

"Wait... what?" Autumn looked at Maddie with her mouth open.

"Did he just..." Ally gasped.

"Don't ask. I don't know." Maddie muttered.

"What the fuck?" Elyse murmured, and then shook her head and took Jay's place, helping Maddie get up. "Let's get you to the Nurse."

"Ow..." Maddie winced when she stood up. "I'm fine see I'm up." she said quickly, though still crying.

"You need to be checked out." Rae sighed.

"Your shoulder is not in its normal position." Ally said.

"And none of us want you to hurt yourself even more..." Autumn added.

"And Jay seemed really worried about you. He really-" Ally said, but Autumn nudged her before she could continue.

"Can we focus on the important thing?" Elyse sighed.

"Maddie do you want us to go with you?" Ceci asked.

"I don't care." Maddie grumbled.

"Well I don't think we should leave you completely alone." Ally said.

"Some of us could go back to the bleachers and watch the game." Rae suggested.

"I'm going." Elyse stated firmly.

"Autumn, go with them. Rae, Ally and I will stay here." Ceci decided. Autumn nodded.

"Sounds fine by me." Rae said.

"We'll come straight to you after the game." Ally said to Maddie.

"Yeah yeah whatever..." she replied quietly, wiping tears from her eyes.

"We need to get her checked out." the first aid person said to the girls.

"We're on it." Elyse nodded and the group split up.


	15. Fourteen

"Okay Madison, time to pop your shoulder back in." the doctor said, who had been brought in just in case. They were currently in the nurse's office, Elyse and the doctor on either side of Maddie, with Autumn stood by Elyse. "Three... two... one." the doctor counted down and with a swift movement, the shoulder was back in its proper place.

"FUCK!" Maddie exclaimed. "That fucking hurt fuck." she teared up again.

"It's okay it's done now." Autumn said quietly. "That was really bad. That must have hurt a lot."

"No shit!" Maddie snapped.

"But is it hurting right now?" Elyse asked.

"No." Maddie wiped her eyes.

"That's good. Now..." the doctor held up a sling. "You must keep it in the sling for two weeks."

"Are you kidding?!" Maddie shook her head. "There's no way I'm wearing a sling. For two weeks! What am I supposed to do?"

"Ice it four times a day and after it's recovered you will need to do some exercises. No tourney for around six weeks unless it's the cannon, which will be allowed a week or two the sling comes off." the doctor explained seriously. "And recovery time will take longer if you don't immobilize it."

"But that's taking my whole life away! Because I doubt I'll be able to do archery either." Maddie grumbled. "That's like taking her ice powers away!" she pointed at Elyse.

"If you want to risk your shoulder's mobility and possibly have to get surgery, making it impossible for you to resume those activities again, then be my guest." the doctor said harshly.

"So that means I'm going to have to wear the sling for the coronation too. I'm already being made to wear a dress! Now I'm going to look even stupider." Maddie complained.

"I'll make sure she doesn't strain it." Elyse interrupted.

"I'm not a baby." Maddie grumbled.

"But you're too active and stubborn..." Autumn said quietly. "You like sport too much."

"Yeah and now I can't do any of it because of Prince Jerk." Maddie said.

"Autumn we should probably try to get Fairy Godmother to at least get him kicked out of the team." Elyse grumbled.

"She won't kick him out." Maddie scoffed.

"He's Cinderella's son... and we all know Fairy Godmother has a soft spot for him." Autumn pointed out. "She won't do anything."

"Well it wasn't an accident. No matter how much he tries to make it seem like one." Maddie said.

"Well I can damn try." Elyse said, standing up and rushing out of the room.

"Wait!" Autumn ran after Elyse. "Elyyyyse!"

"Great. Now I'm alone." Maddie sighed.

"Think again Red." a voice came from the doorway. Jay was leaning against it. "Are you okay?"

"Shouldn't you be out on the field?" Maddie said after jumping slightly in surprise.

"The game's over." Jay shrugged as he walked towards her.

"So we lost." she sighed.

"Of course we didn't. We won." he smirked. Maddie smiled but then raised her eyebrows.

"Theeeennn why aren't you out there celebrating?" she questioned.

"I came to see if you were okay." Jay muttered, and she tilted her head.

"Well you know I've had my shoulder popped back into place and now I have to have this stupid sling for two weeks and I want to kill Prince Jerk but you know I'm fine." Maddie shrugged, well, shrugged the best she could.

"Are you sure?" he sat down next to her, touching her cheek carefully. "You couldn't get up before... and you were crying. I hated seeing you like that..." Maddie raised her eyebrows.

"Why do you care so much, Muscles? Why?" she questioned.

"I don't know." Jay said quietly.

"You're a VK. Since when is caring in the cards for you?" Maddie laughed slightly."Didn't you ask me that question earlier?" he asked."Yeah… I still want my answer…" she said breathily.

"Well… since I met you, Red." he ran his hand down her jaw and cupped her cheek.

"Wh-what's that got to do with it?" she stammered, her cheeks starting to darken.

"You're making me realise who I really am, Red." he said softly, stroking her cheek. "That I enjoy things other than just stealing and causing trouble. That I'm falling for the girl on the tourney team…"

"W-what... do you… mean…" Maddie trailed off as Jay slowly pulled her face closer to his. His eyes danced down to her lips. Her heartbeat increased rapidly. But she closed her eyes as their lips met, softly and gently. It felt so right. So nice… Maddie felt herself lost in the moment as she and Jay shared their first kiss.

"So she wasn't..." Elyse walked back into the room, though she froze in the doorway. "In her office..." she finished, trailing off into a whisper as she took in the scene in front of her. Maddie and Jay kissing. Neither of them noticed Elyse, and she backed away with tears in her eyes.


End file.
